State Street resident Britt Holzmacher is aiming for a fix to what she sees as treacherous traffic for pedestrians at the intersection of MacArthur and Williams boulevards.

Holzmacher, a stay-at-home mom, lives near Washington Park and likes taking her three children — ages 8, 5 and an infant — to the park. But sometimes her concerns about crossing MacArthur at Williams keeps them from going.

“There's no crosswalk, and cars go flying by,” Holzmacher said. “So many people are standing there waiting, it's scary. … Sometimes we're waiting there for 15 minutes and I just say, ‘Forget it, we're not even going to go.'”

Holzmacher began an online petition at change.org, which as of mid-afternoon Tuesday had reached 201 signatures, for the city's Department of Public Works to “create a safe way for pedestrians to enter and exit Washington Park at MacArthur and Williams Boulevard.”

Holzmacher took her concerns to Ward 6 Ald. Cory Jobe, who said Monday he thinks there needs to be some sort of remedy for pedestrian safety in the area, though he isn't entirely sure what configuration might work.

According to the Illinois Department of Transportation, the average daily traffic count for MacArthur Boulevard at its intersection with Williams was 15,100 cars in 2012, the most recent data available on the department's website.

With redevelopment efforts along MacArthur, including the bustling new Hy-Vee grocery store, traffic counts in the area have surely increased and will continue to rise, Jobe said.

“I think it's important that we look at getting pedestrians safely across MacArthur,” Jobe said. “I think we should be proactive. No one has been hurt yet, but someone could get hurt.”

After speaking to Holzmacher, Jobe said he reached out to Public Works Director Mark Mahoney and Lori Williams, the city's traffic engineer.

One of the challenges with the section of road in question is that it's a main artery moving traffic north-south through the city, and putting in a stoplight or a stop sign, Holzmacher's original suggestions, would disrupt the flow of traffic, city officials said.

Holzmacher said Monday she understands that, and suggested instead flashing yellow lights or painting a pedestrian walkway on the road to raise awareness among motorists of the pedestrian-heavy area. She's continuing her online petition and may also walk door-to-door in her neighborhood seeking written signatures.

“I think the least we could do is put some sort of a marked crosswalk there,” Jobe said.

There are some challenges associated with some of the remedies that have been suggested, including stop signs, stoplights and a crosswalk without additional traffic-control devices, Williams said.

Placing an all-way stop at that location could create additional safety issues because “this type of traffic control would be unexpected for the driver since this whole corridor is controlled by signals at the major cross streets, Williams wrote in a May 16 post on the change.org petition Holzmacher started.

Page 2 of 2 - The department doesn't currently have the funding for a new stoplight there, which would cost roughly $250,000 at that intersection, Williams said.

The department has applied for a grant to fund improvements along a stretch of the MacArthur Boulevard corridor, but Williams doesn't expect to know whether Springfield will receive the money until August or September, she said.

There are pedestrian warning signs on MacArthur in the area, and the Springfield Police Department does periodic speed checks in the area.

“We do have pedestrian signs out there in the park area,” Williams said. “People, if they pay attention to them, should realize there are people on bikes and on foot in that area.”